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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/28272744">The Truth Is Waiting To Be Found</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/pinkevilbob/pseuds/pinkevilbob'>pinkevilbob</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Critical Role (Web Series)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Creatures &amp; Monsters, F/M</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-12-23</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-12-23</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-18 01:48:52</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,021</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/28272744</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/pinkevilbob/pseuds/pinkevilbob</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Caleb finds something, or rather someone, baffling in the ruins of Eiselcross.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Jester Lavorre/Caleb Widogast</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>30</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>The Truth Is Waiting To Be Found</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>So I was watching 118 and when Matt was describing the lab, I went "I have to write an AU for this". And I did.</p>
<p>Littlekoalawings beta'd this for me. The title comes from "Human" by Ellie Goulding.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Caleb hated the cold. Bren had also hated the cold. All of his false names and aliases hated the cold in fact, but it was now as Caleb that he had to deal with it. The winters of Blumenthal had nothing on the unending coldness of Eiselcross.</p>
<p>But Eiselcross was where Caleb had been sent by the magnanimous Bright Queen and her dynasty. He knew that he was lucky to have been given asylum after he had defected from the empire, and that for now, he had to pay them back through these errands and the like. Caleb could still grumble as he searched the ruins though.</p>
<p>Eeriness hung in the air Caleb explored what he could only assume was once a laboratory. There was something wrong about the place, but he knew that if he left, Caleb would just be made to go back in. With a snap of his fingers, Caleb summoned four globules of light. </p>
<p>Glass tubes filled the lab with labels in an ancient tongue. "Guess, I'll need to use another spell slot," Caleb muttered to himself as he gave himself the ability to read anything. The labels were things like PRIMORDIAL APPLICATIONS and BIOLOGICAL WEAPON RESEARCH. It didn't sit well in his stomach, but he wasn't there for the sake of his stomach, he was there for the sake of the Dynasty.</p>
<p>Part of Caleb was still wondering if he should slip away from the Dynasty and just disappear, but he couldn't afford to make another powerful enemy. So he kept looking through the chamber.</p>
<p>He paused in front of a tube. It held what looked like a beautiful woman, a blue tiefling, but she was all wrong. Claws grew out of her hands and her tail was bladed. This was not a woman, but a monster. Caleb could relate to that, but it did nothing to put him at ease.</p>
<p>"Caleb!" Verin, the lead of the expedition yelled out. Caleb jumped a foot in the air and hit something. "Have you found anything yet?"</p>
<p>"Not ye-" Caleb started to answer, but then he looked down to see what his hand had hit. A rather large button with a sign reading RELEASE.</p>
<p>The glass tubing creaked and then slowly rose up. Icy mist spilled out of it obscuring Caleb's view and once it had cleared, the woman it had held was gone. Caleb's heart stopped as he tried to convince himself that he was seeing things, that there must've not been a woman in there in the first place.</p>
<p>He was proven wrong though as an icy cold hand wrapped around his throat and then slammed him against the wall. The woman, the monster, glared down at him, her eyes glowing purple. Caleb tried to cry for help, but fear gripped him even tighter than she had.</p>
<p>"Caleb? Is everything alright there?" Verin asked.</p>
<p>Caleb couldn't move or think. His eyes were locked on the monstrous woman. Her bladed tail lightly pressed into Caleb’s throat not quite hard enough to make him bleed but not so light that he couldn’t feel it. He didn’t dare even breath for fear of driving the blade in deeper.</p>
<p>The woman leaned in closer and spoke in a forgotten guttural language(Caleb almost chuckled at his luck of being able to read anything, but not speak everything). Her face was placid and unreadable, like she had never had a thought or emotion once in her life.</p>
<p>“Caleb! I’m coming in!” Verin said.</p>
<p>“Don’t!” Caleb shouted. His death was inevitable; he knew that much for certain. This woman, whatever she was, was unstoppable. But the rest of the expedition party, he could at least delay the demise of. “Leave this place immediately.”</p>
<p>“What are you talking about? What have you gotten yourself into this time?”</p>
<p>Caleb nearly protested, but the monstrous woman leaned forward and kissed him. It had been well over a decade since Caleb had last been kissed, and this was the least likely way he could’ve imagined for how it would’ve happened again. The kiss was long, but gentle in a way that Caleb had forgotten that a kiss could be.</p>
<p>The woman pulled back and her eyes no longer glowed. She smiled at him showing off fangs, but it was harder to call her a monster now. “Hi!” she said brightly.</p>
<p>“Hallo,” Caleb said numbly, not fully comprehending what just happened.</p>
<p>She grinned so brightly and cheerfully it made no sense. “I’m Jester!”</p>
<p>“You are also holding onto my throat,” Caleb blurted out.</p>
<p>“Oh! Sorry!” Jester immediately let go of him and pulled away her tail. “So what is your name?”</p>
<p>Caleb rubbed his throat. “Danke. I’m Caleb Widogast.”</p>
<p>“Caleb! There you are!” Verin stepped into view. “I shouldn’t have sent you in alone. Are you okay? Wait, who is this?”</p>
<p>Dread filled Caleb as he tried to come up with what to say. He didn’t even understand what just happened either. But when he looked over at Jester again, she was merely an ordinary tiefling. Gone were her imposing presence and natural weapons, in their place a disarming smile. “I’m Jester. I was trapped here and super scared, but Caleb saved me!”</p>
<p>Verin chuckled. “And you were trying to keep the rest of us out to have more time alone with her?”</p>
<p>“What? That is-” Caleb looked over at Jester. He couldn’t trust her, that much was true, but he couldn’t bring himself to condemn her either. “I wouldn’t quite phrase it that way.”</p>
<p>“Of course not.” Verin smirked, but it was a good natured one. “There’s a fire already and we’ve got some tea brewing. You must be freezing.”</p>
<p>Jester looked confused, but she nodded anyway. “That would be so nice. Lead the way.” She held onto Caleb’s arm almost hugging it.</p>
<p>He had no idea what was clinging onto his arm, but Caleb was going to stay with her. For now. There was no telling if she was a harbinger of doom, but if she was, he’d take care of her. And if she wasn’t, then Caleb would more happily take care of her.</p>
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